New waffle place opening in River North

October 02, 2012|By Michell Eloy | Tribune Reporter

Is there any reason waffles should be relegated exclusively to the breakfast menu? Or, for that matter, only enjoyed in a more saccharine form? Tim Jandovitz, owner of Bel 50, a new waffle sandwich restaurant opening in late October in River North, is basing his business model on hopes that Chicagoans will answer those questions with a resounding “no.”

Jandovitz, a former New York hedge fund manager who traded in pricey portfolios to get his waffle restaurant concept off the ground, is set to open what he hopes will be just the first Bel 50. “While I think I was better than the average person at my [former] job, I didn't feel like I was building anything of tangible value,” Jandovitz said. “I wanted to build something according to my corporate philosophy, something I could do and do the way I wanted.”

Designed as a fast-casual restaurant, Bel 50 will feature both savory and sweet sandwiches wrapped in a Belgian-style waffle. As for the menu, Jandovitz had some assistance from San Francisco-based chef Joey Altman, former host of the James Beard Award-winning food-magazine television show Bay Cafe.

Until the opening, scheduled to happen right before Halloween, here are three menu options to get you salivating.

The Burrata Waffle: Burrata, a type of soft Italian cheese made from mozzarella and cream, is garnished with fresh basil and thinly sliced pieces of prosciutto. Extra-virgin olive oil is drizzled on top along with a few pinches of salt and pepper before everything’s folded into the waffle (Altman developed a more savory waffle — akin to country bread — specifically for the lunch/dinner menu).

The Pork Waffle: Southern United States meets south-of-the-border flavors in this menu option. Dry-rubbed, slow-roasted pieces of pork are tossed in barbeque sauce before they’re folded into the waffle with avocado salsa and cilantro for garnish.

The S’mores Waffle: What menu would be complete without dessert? For the S’mores Waffle, pieces of dark chocolate are melted alongside roasted marshmallows and pieces of soft graham cracker. That’s all stacked between pieces of warm, fresh-off-the-griddle waffle quarters.